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Cold Blood
Cold Blood is Matoro58's entry for the Custom BIONICLE Wiki:Winter Writing Contest 2013. It takes place in the Downfall Alternate universe and surrounds an assassination Toa Varkon has to carry out. Story Chapter 1: The Message Time: The Spherus Magna Core War... A figure walked through a perfectly carved hallway. Thousands of years of foundation and construction were all falling apart. The war that raging across the planet was shaking Spherus Magna to the core quite literally. Outside, a robot was being built to take innocent beings and study other worlds. The being came to a stop in front of a large Stasis tube. Inside was a white and light blue being he had created. Well, not technically. This being was from one of the armies outside. But he had his memories wiped and fitted with a sword that shot ice, and a shield that could shatter frozen beings into fragments. This was a final solution. If the beings that were placed inside neglected their duty and went to war, this fighter had orders to kill them. And as the being in front of the tube marveled at his creation, a single name rang through his mind: The Winter Soldier... ---- Present day... Toa Varkon wasn't a fan of pubs, bars, or taverns. In fact, he despised them. And it didn't help that the didn't plan on being here today at all. He first planned to assassinate the High-king of one of the Southern Islands. But a few days before, he received a message to him from a Skakdi leader on Zakaz, saying they needed him to kill someone. He started to berate the messenger when he said he would be payed well. Varkon then reluctantly agreed to come to a designated location, otherwise known as The Muaka's Head. '' Varkon looked around. Apart from him, there were only three beings inside, including the barman, a bulky Steltian Laborer, probably one of the very few who had freedom. The other two were a Mahiki-wearing Po-Matoran and a skinny but wiry-looking Skakdi of Sonics. A waitress came over to him. She was a Vortixx, who looked slender, young, and a bit cheerful. She looked at him. "Hello there. My name is Morsa and you are..." "Piruk." He lied. He touched his Mask of Biomechanics. He was still getting used to his oddly-shaped mask, which made him look like a Skakdi. However, it was still better than showing off with his infected Hau Nuva in public. Morsa smiled at him. "Thank you, Piruk. So what would you like?" She asked. Varkon shook his head. "No thanks. I'm just here to meet with a client of mine." He explained. Not a lie, just not the whole truth. She didn't know he was actually one of the Matoran Universe's most feared assassins. Morsa nodded. "Alright then." She then walked away. As soon as she was out of sight, Varkon saw something move in the Shadows. He got up and walked towards it. Then, as he was two feet away from the figure, a hand grabbed his arm, and he was pulled outside. The figure became visible now. It was a Skakdi of Air. His body frame was skinny and frail, and he looked like he was about to collapse. The Skakdi then opened his mouth. "On th-th-the b-be-behalf on l-l-lord Jarzak, I thank you for coming, Toa Varkon. Varkon glared at him. "I don't go by "Toa" Varkon anymore. It's just Varkon." He sneered. The Skakdi gulped. "Well, anyways, what we need you to deal with is something that is killing our soldiers. We don't have a name for him, but we find the name, ''The Winter Soldier, written in the blood of the victims. He has been terrorizing us for the past two months or so. We need you to kill him." The messenger said. Varkon snarled. "And what's in it for me?" The Skakdi's eyes widened with fear. "50,000 widgets, Toa." He said. Varkon then placed his hand on the Skakdi's wrist. Then the Skakdi immediately lit on fire, and thrashed out and screamed in agony. In less than a minute, all that was let of the Skakdi was a pile of ashes. Then Varkon headed back to his boat. His allies would love this. ---- "Fifty thousand widgets?" Gibrax exclaimed. Varkon rolled his eyes. His 'crew' was a group of outcasts. Gibrax was an Upper-class Steltian who lost his slaves when they rebelled against him. He then looked at the team's inventor, a Fe-Matoran named Hazan, a former Nynrah Ghost who went to sell his goods to Xians. Varkon had met him on Xia. Finally, Varkon turned his head to the Ebrok, a Skakdi of water who was Varkon's oldest and best friend. His expression was unreadable. Ebrok was from Zakaz, where he served in the Civil War that took place on his island. There, Ebrok worked as a soldier until he was captured and taken to a labor camp. Varkon had met him at the war camp after he completed an assigned massacre. Varkon freed the slaves, and took Ebrok with him. "Fifty-Thousand widgets for...what again, Varkon?" Ebrok asked. "The assassination of someone - or something called The Winter Soldier" Varkon explained. Ebrok's face was visible now: Hie expression was of pure shock and his eyes were full of fright. "Th-the Winter Soldier?" He sputtered. "You've heard of it?" Varkon inquired. Ebrok looked at him. "It hasn't been around for two months, Varkon. It's been around for as long as we Skakdi can remember." Varkon frowned. "Explain." He ordered. Ebrok took a deep breath. "When we first started fighting, territories were disputed after armies were settled. Jarzak- I served under him. It's a legend passed around the warriors in his league. It's like Irnakk's legend, except this warrior isn't a Skakdi. He has the powers of a Toa, but he doesn't seem like one." Varkon nodded. "What does he look like?" Ebrok shrugged. "No one knows. Anyone who meets him usually gets killed. And those that survive the encounter...they're driven mad and die a few weeks later. Maybe even days." Varkon chuckled. "You Skakdi have beheaded enemies, ridden Tahtorak, and you're telling me you're scared by a simple warriors. He's soon going to find out I'm no Skakdi...and that he's no match for me." ---- The coastline was covered in frost and snow. Icebergs were floating around the boat. Fortunately, Varkon was a Toa of fire, so keeping it warm wasn't hard. He had a dagger in one hand, and a ball of fire in the other. He had to keep his image up as an assassin, even on Zakaz, where every square bio was a battleground. They saw a dock that was enough to keep their boat at. Once there, Varkon jumped on and tied the boat to a post. The others soon followed, with Ebrok at the rear. Varkon chuckled to himself. A warrior in Zakaz that was feared by whole armies of Skakdi. And one Toa of fire that had murdered millions. Something told him that in the case of this, it wasn't going to be an easy fight. This Winter Soldier is just another in the death of millions. Fire beats ice every time. "Halt!" Turning to the side, Varkon and his allies saw half a dozen soldiers heading towards them. Once within half a bio away from them, a male Skakdi of Sonics stopped. He opened his mouth. "I am Lieutenant Sydrak, a warrior under Lord Jarzak. You will come with us!" He yelled over the wind. Varkon then threw his hands in the air, a maniacal smile on his Mask of Adaption. "Already then," He chuckled, "Take me to your leader!" Chapter 2: The Killer Unveiled Zakaz wouldn’t have been known for icy climate. But in it’s mountain ranges, the peaks were covered in a white blanket of snow. But it wasn’t the weather that was giving this Skakdi patrol chills down their spines. They were on the lookout for opposing Skakdi or invaders. Which they each thought was quite stupid, since it was too cold for opposing armies. This army was lucky; they’ve adapted to the climate and snow. They had Rahi that were used to this kind of weather. Even the Skakdi of Fire and Plasma were used to the weather. But they were never used to surprise attacks. One Skakdi heard something, and looked behind himself. Moments later, he let out a scream and fell to the ground, a stab wound in his heart. The others immediately drew out their weapons. But it wasn’t long until another Skakdi was stabbed, still drawing out his weapon. The two remaining ones, a Skakdi of Iron and a Skakdi of Gravity were glancing around frantically. The Skakdi of Iron opened her mouth, and a blade came out of it, and then went back out of it. She then fell to the ground, a sickening, bone snapping crunch ''echoing across the valley of snow. The remaining Skakdi urged his rahi to ride away, to which it obeyed, quickly fleeing with the Skakdi. Once he was sure he wasn’t being followed, the Skakdi laughed. He escaped with not a scratch on him. Lord Jarzak would be pleased. Then his rahi collapsed. At first he tried whipping it, but then he saw a stab wound in one of it’s eyes, and immediately knew he wasn’t alone. He jumped off and stumbled through the blizzard. This cursed weather wasn’t helping him survive. The amount of snow that was falling was so colossal, his sight was blurred and white. Suddenly, he got hit in the back. He held his axe and swung it around, but kept getting hit. Eventually, he fell, his blood staining the snow. A shadow fell in front of him, and he forced himself to look up. A figure stood in front of him. A cape was billowing behind the stranger, and held a sword in his left hand, and a shield in his right. Then the mysterious warrior moved closer, and for the first and last time, the Skakdi saw the being clearly. “No!” The Skakdi of Gravity screamed, “No, please! No!” Then the sword then came down on the Skakdi’s neck. He stopped screaming, but the echoes of them could still be heard around the valley. ''Cries from the dead. '' ---- Varkon could hardly see anything through the thick blizzard snow. He’d been to a few mountain ranges during his career as an assassin, but this was unbelievable. Zakaz would look like a barren wasteland to an outsider’s view, but there was a ring of mountain ranges on the island’s inside. ''And somewhere in these mountain ranges, was a soldier who was killing Skakdi every day. No doubt why Skakdi never talked about this. A murderer, a soldier that could blend through the blizzards easily, would’ve made the species look weak. And Skakdi weren’t knowing for being weak. Skakdi were vicious, strong, and battle-hungry warriors who killed each other each day. Yet the thought of a single killer in the mountains could literally send chills down their spines. Varkon had been part of the team that had fought the Kanohi dragon. He came face-to-face with a Makuta and survived the ecounter. He even climbed The Mountain on Xia and climbed down with all his limbs intact. And the, “Winter Soldier”, sounded like foe that would be the death of him. The lead Skakdi, Sydrak, or whatever his name was held hand up. The other Skakdi stopped, so Varkon and his allies obeyed as well. The renegade Toa of Fire felt like getting on a Skakdi’s bad side wasn’t the worst that was going to happen today. ---- Jarzak wouldn’t have given a damn to his starving soldiers. The way he saw it, he was superior, and his soldiers were underlings. Capable of nothing. He was a leader, and the respect he deserved had to come each soldier. They should be loyal to their cause, and stay that way. Loyalty was what mattered most. They should stay loyal to him, even if they were starving and dying. As long as they stayed loyal, they weren’t expandable. He was growing away and away from his youth, with every step he took, every bite of food, every moment of sleep. His Warhammer was still on it’s stand. He haven’t used it for a long, long, time. Ever since he started walking with a limp, he couldn’t fight as he used to, and his league was weakening. Losing more battles, and decreasing in numbers. And that Winter Soldier, a mysterious entity that was murdering his troops one by one. They weren’t winning more battles, and he needed help, something a warlord would refuse to admit, and something that was scorned by Skakdi. He had sent for many mercenaries, a Dark Hunter, a group of Toa, even one Makuta. All of them returned empty-handed. Varkon was his last hope. The renegade Toa of fire was known for slaying warrior-kings, mutant Rah, Makuta, other assassins, Turaga, and so on. If he couldn’t kill the Winter Soldier then Jarzak knew that only death awaited him and his army. A guard came forth to him. “Sir, Sydrak has returned.” He said. Jarzak got up from his throne and smiled. “I’ll be there.” The warlord replied. He took the hilt of his Warhammer, and lifted it for the first time in millennia. As Jarzak went out, only one thing was going through his mind. He was Jarzak, Skakdi warlord, and only he was Jarzak. No one else. ---- Varkon was tired of waiting. Sydrak had sent one of the soldiers to get Jarzak once they reached the gate. If the little Brakas monkey didn’t know what was good for him and returned in five minutes, the Toa of fire would march in, find the Skakdi, wring his neck, and place the head on a pole for The Winter Soldier to come looking.'' '' The Toa of Fire doubted the Skakdi knew who he really was. They thought he was a Toa of fire. Take his mask of adaption off and place a Hau Nuva and they’d find out he’s a mercenary, assassin, serial killer. His whole life wasn’t killing, and he was pretty sure it won’t stay that way. He worked as an assassin, but sometimes he got paid to kill. And he always made sure he was paid well. Sydrak kept staring ahead. Varkon knew that they were waiting for Jarzak, but he had better things to do than this. Suddenly they heard a voice. “Well, if it isn’t Sydrak. Back with some unusual prey, I see.” The figure came into view. He was a Skakdi of Sonics, thin, tall, but Varkon could see he was wiry. The Skakdi held a Warhammer in his left hand, which didn’t look threatening, but Varkon knew better than to argue with looks. This was, by no doubt, Jarzak. Jarzak stared at the former hero before smiling. “Varkon. I wasn’t expecting you to come. My messenger, Artrex, would’ve told me. Where is he?” The Warlord asked. Varkon chuckled. “He enjoyed a special cremation I gave him. His ashes should be in the silver sea right now.” Jarzak narrowed his eyes. “You don’t want to get on my bad side, Toa. You may be feared from the rest of the universe, but trust me, my warriors have nothing to fear from you.” Varkon chuckled. “Me? Get on your bad side? Your warriors have plenty to fear from me. They’re starving in this weather; I could from the shape of these Skakdi. You talk of your glory, yet your soldiers keep losing battles. You say they have nothing to fear, then how come a simple warrior in the blizzards keeps killing them off?” He paused, expecting a reaction from Jarzak, but the warlord was staring coldly at the renegade Toa of Fire. “I have been to the top of the mountain on Xia, and all down to the fiery pits of hell on Artidax. I fought against the Kanohi Dragon on Metru-Nui, killed a member of the Brotherhood of Makuta, and was one of the first Toa. Your army is nothing, and you’re an abortion.” Varkon finished. Jarzak opened his mouth. “You got that right, when you said my warriors are being killed off in the blizzards. But this warrior has the power to drive us Skakdi insane. Please, Varkon. I will say these words because I’m desperate: Help us.” Jarzak pleaded. Varkon smiled. He didn’t deal with this every day, so it was entertaining to see a Skakdi Warlord of the highest class plead with him- an experienced and deadly mercenary –for help against a warrior called The Winter Soldier. '' The toa of fire eyes gleamed. Life just wasn’t hard enough. “I will help you.” He said. “And make sure I get paid good. I didn’t come here all the way for nothing.” ---- An hour later, Varkon and two Skakdi were riding out in the blizzard. Varkon had only worked with Ebrok, and no other Skakdi, so he wasn’t comfortable doing this. He had broken into a Skakdi War camp when he found Ebrok. Varkon had angered a whole horde of Skakdi, and killed nearly most of them. He had killed millions in his career. It didn’t matter who, but Ebrok, Gibrax, and Hazan were lucky. They didn’t have to live with the echoes of their victims’ last screams. They didn’t have to fear going to bed scared by ghosts. ''At least dead victims can’t kill you in your sleep. ''He thought. The Winter Soldier probably did live with the cries of Skakdi, driven insane before they died. These two were a male Skakdi of Plantlife, and a male Skakdi of Plasma. Both were burly and had faces that wouldn’t have looked out of shape on Makuta Teridax’s backside. These two were going to hell. They were taken as “bait”. The Winter Soldier would kill both when he saw them. ''And Varkon intended to end the Warrior’s life as the last Skakdi was stabbed. The Toa smiled. It had been so long since he decapitated the Makuta’s head. He killed the Makuta of Jarna-Nui during a battle, which led to his exile and started his career as an assassin. Suddenly he heard a scream. He didn’t need to turn around. He knew The Winter Soldier was there. The other Skakdi, the Skakdi of Plasma, immediately started swinging his ax behind Varkon. The Skakdi was suddenly frozen, and seconds later, sliced to bits as a shield went through him. Varkon then stayed still. He heard footsteps behind him. They were coming closer, get a bit louder, and when he heard a sword being lifted, with the speed of a Doom Viper luging at it’s victim, Varkon reached back and grabbed something. The hard part was done. Now it’s time to unmask the killer. Knowing anything could happen next, Varkon took a deep breath, nd turned him and his rahi around. The Winter Soldier was almost as tall as him, covered in white and delicate armor. They had carvings on them, which Varkon didn’t recognized. The legs were thin, but swift in order to make a getaway. The torso was covered with an unknown style of armor, and large as well. The arms were muscular, with a razor-sharp sword in one hand, and a shield lined with sharp, pointy edges that were sharp and thin enough to cut head clean in one, fluid motion. Varkon was holding the entity by the neck, but could tell it was long. The face was mask behind a helmet, with two eyeholes, his eyes ice-blue. A cape billowed behind the being, black in the whiteness of the blizzard. Varkon got off his Rahi, the latter running away the moment the Toa touched the ground. He didn’t care for the rahi. He only cared about his money’s worth. The being then spoke. “''I am the Winter Soldier.” He said. Varkon grunted. “Knew about that.” He replied. “''I am here to kill you.” “What a coincidence; so am I.” The Winter Soldier looked at Varkon. His eyes were clear and cold. “''You can’t kill me.” The renegade Toa of fire sneered. “Why is that?” He asked. “''Long ago, I lived on another world. It was peaceful, until we discovered a mysterious liquid in the territory where I lived. The liduid had that power to change and mutate, as well as destroy.” “We claimed it as our own. The five other groups weren’t happy with that. We then were led into war, where thousands got slaughtered.” “Then in one battle, I was saved from death. I was sent to the rulers’ fortress, where they gave me new armor, a sword, shield and cape.” “The next thing I remember, I awoke here, when one of the natives freed me. I killed him, and killed others to stop war from ever happening. I will do that until I die, and you cannot kill me. For I am The Winter Soldier, and will kill in order to stop the bloodshed and violence that killed my people.” Varkon then sneered. “Well, too bad. And here’s the reason why: If you are ice, I am fire. Fire destroys everything. “I am an assassin. The Assassin of Fire. I kill and kill. I destroyed millions of lives, and I don’t intend on stopping anytime soon. Because I am Varkon, and you, The Winter Soldier, will die, right now.” The Winter Soldier glanced at him. “''Then kill me.”'' Varkon then placed his hand on The Winter Soldier’s wrist. Then like thunder booming in a storm, The Winter Soldier immediately lit on fire. He didn’t scream, and within a second, the armored warrior, The Winter Soldier, was nothing more than a pile of ashes. The Winter Soldier was dead. Epilogue Rylux stared at the sea. Nothing interesting, since he was on an icy coastline. The mountains shimmered blue and white behind him. Light tricks. He served the Makuta, who’s pure goal was to bring shadows. And that included getting rid of the two suns. A shadow fell behind him. “You know Rylux, I just saw the most interesting thing. That Toa of Fire, Varkon, had killed this warrior known as The Winter Soldier.” Rylux snarled. “That Toa of Fire pushed off a cliff. He tried to kill me. And yet you’re praising him by reciting his newest accomplishment, Lord Vesper.” The Skakdi hissed. Makuta Vesper laughed. “And yet you’re still mad about what happened over 30,000 years ago. I’m impressed.” “I got scarred for life. I swore a vendetta on him that night. If you didn’t use you Vaccum, Stasis, and Teleport powers on me, I’d be dead.” The Skakdi of Lightning sneered. “And make sure I don’t regret making that decision. Now I have task for you.” Vesper went on. A dagger materialized front of Rylux. He quickly grabbed it by the hilt. “There’s a local Tavern half a day’s hike west to here. It’s owner, one of your specimen, Hakann, might’ve heard of the events that happened. Ask what he knows. If he know too much, slice his throat.” Vesper ordered. Rylux’s Skakdi smile curved into an evil grin. “I will not fail, Vesper. You won’t regret saving my life.” The Skakdi said out loud. Vesper smiled behind him. “You would’ve made a good Makuta." And even Rylux knew that soon, the universe will be Vesper’s, and not even Toa Varkon can stop him. Rylux headed in the direction of the Tavern. And as snow started coming down, tonight, he was sure blood would be spilled and stain the snow red. And his revenge was coming. And revenge is always a victory. ''Always. ''" Characters *Toa **Varkon *Skakdi **Ebrok **Sydrak **Jarzak **Artrex **Unknown Skakdi of Sonics **Five Unnamed Skakdi that accompanied Sydrak **Unname Skakdi of Plasma **Unknown Skakdi of Plantlife **Rylux **Hakann (Mentioned) *Matoran **Hazan **Unknown Mahiki-Wearing Po-Matoran **Piruk (Mentioned) *Other Matoran Universe Residents **Gibrax **Morsa **Unnamed Steltian Laborer Barman **Makuta Vesper *Residents of Spherus Magna **The Winter Soldier **Unknown Great Being Trivia *The story's banner was designed by Jman98, but uploaded by Matoro58 to CBW *The story's theme song is Numb by Linkin Park *This story won First Place in The Custom BIONICLE Wiki:Winter Writing Contest 2013 * This story is canon to Matoro58's Downfall Story Arc * The story's title was originally The Winter Soldier, but was changed due to an upcoming Captain America movie with the same name.